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Evaporation and collection of precipitation from the water cycle happens with all bodies of water on Earth. A body of water refers to any amount of water including all lakes, rivers, ponds, springs, groundwater, glaciers, icebergs, estuaries, and the ocean.
All bodies of water, as well as water in the atmosphere, make up the hydrosphere that you learned about in a previous lesson. Additionally, all bodies of water participate in the water cycle through evaporation and collecting precipitation.
Click through the slideshow below to see a variety of different bodies of water. Read each slide to learn a bit more about each one.
Freshwater lakes are often found among mountains, where they are surrounded by land and collect water from nearby rivers and streams and from precipitation in the form of rain or snowfall.
The largest freshwater lake in the United States is Lake Superior, which covers 31,700 square miles.
Rivers are made of fresh water that flows into other rivers, lakes, and the ocean. Rivers collect water through precipitation, such as rainfall and snowfall, as well as through melting ice that flows into streams and eventually meets up with the river.
The longest river in the United States is the Mississippi River, which stretches 2,348 miles.
Ponds are called standing water bodies because the water within them is often stagnant, or doesn’t flow. Similar to lakes but much smaller, ponds have a defined border and can be home to many different types of freshwater fish and plants.
Freshwater springs are locations where aquifer water from deep underground flows to the surface. Springs can join up with freshwater streams and rivers, or they can create lakes and ponds.
Groundwater is a collection of rain and melted snow that has slipped through the soil and rocks to create underground aquifers, or large bodies of storage water below the Earth’s surface. Groundwater is one of the largest sources of drinking water for humans. We build large water pumps that reach down into the groundwater and pump up fresh water for us to use and drink.
Glaciers are large, dense bodies of ice that form over hundreds or even thousands of years. Glaciers are constantly moving very slowly due to the force of their own weight. They form only on land and because of this, they are made of fresh water. Of the 3% of fresh water on planet Earth, 2% is frozen in glaciers.
An iceberg is a large piece of freshwater ice that has broken off a glacier and is floating freely in the ocean. The part you can see above water is just the tip of the iceberg--the majority of the iceberg is below the ocean’s surface.
An estuary is a partially enclosed body of fresh water where one or more rivers connect to the open ocean. This mixture of fresh and salty water provides high levels of nutrients making an estuary a perfect habitat for many aquatic plants and animals.
The world's oceans make up most of the hydrosphere, covering 72% of the Earth's surface and containing 97% of its water. The ocean is made up of salt water and is home to all marine life.
Answer the following questions. When you think you know the answers, click the questions to check your answers.